How to get the cheapest flight to Disney??

[Sortin]

Hi everyone! I'm pretty new here and I can't find any threads about how to get the best airline rates. I tried the transportation board and here on the budget board and can't figure it out.

We are flying from PA to Disney World in October and I don't know if I should book my flight now - through the disney site when I book my hotel and tickets, or should I wait awhile and book them closer to our trip. I want to be able to get a good flight there (early flight) and back (late flight) so I'm worried that if I don't book now my choices will be limited later. BUT if I wait I might get a better deal on the flight???

I have no clue about flying! I have done it once in my adult life and someone else took care of the arrangements. Help! I want to save money but don't know the first thing about flying!

 

[blessedby3]

We have found the cheapest prices for us have been on SWA or Allegiant. SWA has a feature on their site called "Ding" and you download it to your computer and they send out specials a couple of times a day. We got tickets for $28 each way back in 2005, although we havent seen deals like that for years. SWA doesnt fly out of our home airport so we have to drive a couple of hours to use SWA. I believe that Jetblue also has lower prices.
When we fly out of our home airport we fly Allegiant Air. They have lots of fees added in, so you have to keep a check on that. They also dont fly into MCO, so no DME. You fly into Sanford airport with them.
I believe that you usually get a better price on most airlines the farther out you book. I know others will have better info on best times, days to buy. You can also go to www.kayak.com and check mulitple airlines at one time. Good luck to you. Buying airfare is always a pain.

 

[jparc]

Check with the airlines directly. Southwest and jetblue seem to be favorites for cheap flights. We have flown jetblue in the past and they gave us credits for future travel when the price dropped (You just need to be proactive and watch the fares and contact them) Check the airline sights often as prices seem to go up and down randomly. If you see a price you can live with book it...it may not be there tomorrow.

 

[stacielee]

Check with the airlines directly. Southwest and jetblue seem to be favorites for cheap flights. We have flown jetblue in the past and they gave us credits for future travel when the price dropped (You just need to be proactive and watch the fares and contact them) Check the airline sights often as prices seem to go up and down randomly. If you see a price you can live with book it...it may not be there tomorrow.

I do ours on Southwest most of the time. I have booked and re-booked before and had the credit to use for a year after the original booking. right now, we have flights booked for July so I just keep checking the prices and also have Ding on my computer.

Didn't some (maybe all) of the Allegiant flights to Orlando just recently change from Sanford to Orlando (MCO) airport? I thought I saw that on their website...

We've used Allegiant to fly other places from Phoenix, screaming deals if they fly on the days you want. But I don't think they give you any type of credit if the fare drops. Their fares usually go up as the dates get closer anyways.

I would say book now on Southwest if you can because you can always cancel/change it if the fare drops. The only problem with that is if the fare on another airlines goes lower, you still have to use the SW credit within a year. And 2 free bags on SW usually covers any drop in price on other airlines, so don't forget that as well.

 

[Sortin]

Wow! Thank-you for all the advice.

I was reading about the DEM and RAC and am not sure if Southwest and allegiant do the RAC. My DH is set on using DEM and RAC (wow! using these "codes" makes me feel like a pro!)- so I have to make sure of that. Plus - while I was waiting for responses here - I went over to FareCompare and to JetBlue and found that if I wanted a refundable flight I would pay out the ear! But stacielee - you said that I can always cancel and rebook if the fare drops - won't I be charged a fee or something if I do that?

Another problem I ran into with JetBlue is that I found an awesome flight there - $73 per adult ticket, but the return flight was $250 and they didn't have any flights later than around 1:30pm for returning. What do I do with that? Can I do one way on JetBlue and home on another flight? Will RAC work if I do that?

I'm getting there, but still confused. I guess if I didn't care about the cost it would be very easy just to book what I wanted. But I figure the more we save on flying the more spending money the kids will get. I hope.

Thank-you all so much!

 

[Leleluvsdis]

Didn't some (maybe all) of the Allegiant flights to Orlando just recently change from Sanford to Orlando (MCO) airport? I thought I saw that on their website....

I haven't heard this, but if it's true, I would LOVE to know it!!! We can fly alligeint from the airport thats 45mins from us vs driving 3 hours to fly southwest. I would DEFINTLY take that option if they had the right travel dates.

 

[monorailsilver]

What I do is fly on a Tues or Wednesday.

I usually book my room with a few extra days at the beginning & the end & then look for the cheapest airfare on those dates I have booked.

I flew Jet Blue out of White Plains (NY) vs flying Delta out of Bradley (CT) in 2008. We paid $945 for 5 tickets which I thought was an excellent price.

 

[dd50]

Wow! Thank-you for all the advice.

I was reading about the DEM and RAC and am not sure if Southwest and allegiant do the RAC. My DH is set on using DEM and RAC (wow! using these "codes" makes me feel like a pro!)- so I have to make sure of that. Plus - while I was waiting for responses here - I went over to FareCompare and to JetBlue and found that if I wanted a refundable flight I would pay out the ear! But stacielee - you said that I can always cancel and rebook if the fare drops - won't I be charged a fee or something if I do that?

Another problem I ran into with JetBlue is that I found an awesome flight there - $73 per adult ticket, but the return flight was $250 and they didn't have any flights later than around 1:30pm for returning. What do I do with that? Can I do one way on JetBlue and home on another flight? Will RAC work if I do that?

I'm getting there, but still confused. I guess if I didn't care about the cost it would be very easy just to book what I wanted. But I figure the more we save on flying the more spending money the kids will get. I hope.

Thank-you all so much!

Yes, you can get a one way ticket and then look for return trip ticket when the prices are better.

 

[stacielee]

Wow! Thank-you for all the advice.

I was reading about the DEM and RAC and am not sure if Southwest and allegiant do the RAC. My DH is set on using DEM and RAC (wow! using these "codes" makes me feel like a pro!)- so I have to make sure of that. Plus - while I was waiting for responses here - I went over to FareCompare and to JetBlue and found that if I wanted a refundable flight I would pay out the ear! But stacielee - you said that I can always cancel and rebook if the fare drops - won't I be charged a fee or something if I do that?

Another problem I ran into with JetBlue is that I found an awesome flight there - $73 per adult ticket, but the return flight was $250 and they didn't have any flights later than around 1:30pm for returning. What do I do with that? Can I do one way on JetBlue and home on another flight? Will RAC work if I do that?

I'm getting there, but still confused. I guess if I didn't care about the cost it would be very easy just to book what I wanted. But I figure the more we save on flying the more spending money the kids will get. I hope.

Thank-you all so much!

On SW, they don't charge you a fee to change your flight. You can do it all online, your confirmation code is what you use to re-book your flight.

And yes, you can fly different airlines each way.

And like I said, with the other airlines charging you to check bags, SW is usually cheaper if you add that cost in.

One more thing, SW doesn't show up on any other flight comparison websites. You have to check their website separately.

 

[tinkermom23]

Wow! Thank-you for all the advice.

I was reading about the DEM and RAC and am not sure if Southwest and allegiant do the RAC. My DH is set on using DEM and RAC (wow! using these "codes" makes me feel like a pro!)- so I have to make sure of that. Plus - while I was waiting for responses here - I went over to FareCompare and to JetBlue and found that if I wanted a refundable flight I would pay out the ear! But stacielee - you said that I can always cancel and rebook if the fare drops - won't I be charged a fee or something if I do that?
Another problem I ran into with JetBlue is that I found an awesome flight there - $73 per adult ticket, but the return flight was $250 and they didn't have any flights later than around 1:30pm for returning. What do I do with that? Can I do one way on JetBlue and home on another flight? Will RAC work if I do that?

I'm getting there, but still confused. I guess if I didn't care about the cost it would be very easy just to book what I wanted. But I figure the more we save on flying the more spending money the kids will get. I hope.

Thank-you all so much!

I am by no means an expert but I read a lot on the transportation board.

You can fly with one airline there and a different airline home. Whatever flights you find that you can live with. I think the Magical Express works with all the airlines at MCO. Not sure about RAC.

I have read that Allegiant has SOME of their flights go to MCO but I know the one from our closest airport still lands in Sanford. Check carefully before you book to make sure you are really getting what you think you are getting. I recommend that for any airline. Read, read, read... and ask questions because after you book it's usually too late or too expensive to make changes.

I personally use Kayak.com because they show fares from several airlines (not all) but then they direct you to that airline to book, so it is different from priceline or travelocity. I also watched the airline's own website to monitor the flights I was watching to see what days they change in price or if they change times around a lot for the flights I was looking at. When I felt comfortable I booked. I think I found cheapest was Tues.- Thursday.

We do not fly a lot either! Google is your friend and you can find lots of good info to help make your trip easier and less stressful.

Good luck and have fun planning!

 

[Sortin]

I just went to several airline sites. They are so much easier to understand than the comparison sites!

Does anyone know if I can fly SouthWest on the way home and still use RAC from an all star resort?

Is RAC worth it? All they do is check your bags, right? I don't fly so I really don't know why this is such a big deal. We still have to get to the airport 3 hours early even if we use RAC - right? DH wants to do this, but if it means having a more expensive flight I don't think it's worth it.